1. Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a fixed support structure comprising a pair of support units each including a housing and a ball stud formed with a ball portion placed in the housing and a threaded shank portion with the ball portion, the ball stud shank portion extending downward from the housing. The housing is fixed to an upper structure such as a bridge girder in spaced relation, and the ball stud shank portions threadedly to a retainer fixed on a base plate fixed to a lower structure such as a bridge base.
2. Brief Description of the Prior Art
Monorail railways which are generally narrower in girder width as compared with overhead roads and suspension railways are required to have a capacity to bear lifting forces caused by vertical and horizontal loads and tipping moments acting on the girders due to vehicle centrifugal forces and wind loads. Additionally, in monrail railways it is always necessary that the adjustment of the vertical and horizontal position and the inclination of the girders be readily made, since the girders are used as rails.
Like normal overhead roads, monorail railways are also required to accommodate the expansion and contraction of the girders. For this purpose, it has been proposed to construct specified bridge bases in fixed support structure so as to provide an inclination and deflection accommodating function and other bridge bases in movable support structure so as to allow the girders to move axially of the bridge.
In order to satisfy these requirements, various attempts have been made. For example, curved-surface or roller-shaped support members have been interposed between the bridge girders and the bridge bases connected each other by means of anchor bolts. However, such an arrangement is complex in structure, expensive to produce, and trouble to assemble.